[open] ring ring, bingo?

[esperimental]

WHO: Ritsu Kageyama and people who are probably nicer than him
WHERE: All around the city
WHEN: Throughout July
WHAT: Frustrated teen wants answers, does silly things for it; July catch-all, you know the drill!
WARNINGS: None for now!

[ My plotting post for bingo help is over here! ]

i. At least they're not grayberries

[ On the university school grounds of Apprassage, Ritsu mans a respectably built stand of questionable legality. He's fairly certain he can get away with it even with age alone, his professor guardian may have lost his memories of Retrospec, but was supportive in Ritsu's inexplicable one-day business venture. ]

Blueberry juice.
Freshly squeezed.
We have ice.

[ Now that sure is a passionate sales voice, yessir. Also before anyone asks, it's a Royal We. ]

ii. The hero nobody deserves

[ Some kid in a mask stands... uhh. Not that tall. Not that proudly. Maintaining a cross-armed pose lacking in passion. But the summer wind blows, and his cape dramatically flutters. He really hated he got a task like this in summer. He'd hate it all other seasons too but now the weather would be against him as well. Should've checked the forecast, should've picked another day. Wished he had money for sunglasses instead of goggles.

... Should concede and open up that umbrella, now before he gets sunburn. And maybe the shade would make him slightly harder to recognize. Ah, who was he kidding. He looks like some lost kid who wanted to celebrate Halloween a full couple months early. ]

Hey, you.

[ There's a point now, sorry if you were trying to ignore him. ]

Tell me, what do superheroes do?

iii. Maybe impossible

"Flash mob"...

[ Echoing the text on the square as he's seated at Tribunal Terrace, there's a frown on Ritsu's face even more intense than his usual one. He goes ahead and watches a video, shaking his head in defiance after a couple seconds. He's seated outside so the lack of earphones shouldn't bother too many people, but some might've still heard a pop song or Broadway that they knew. ]

No way. Definitely no way. A musical isn't any better. I can't do this kind of thing even with a team. Did anyone else get this kind of assignment? There's no role I can fit.

[ Could always be Robert during Enchanted, does that count Ritsu? Watching on, his will seems to be wilting, and his brows remain furrowed. ]

... Is this supposed to be music?

[ Well, even if you can't help him with such a monumental task, you can still take those as fighting words. ]

Comments

other ritsu! → have a convo w/ a randomly dialed stranger + share a difficult retrospec memory

[esperimental]

Um, hello? Hey, you don't know me, but what's your favorite videogame?

[ Look man, people kept bringing it up in his birthday inquiry post, chances are this person he's dialed is a gamer?? Hopefully????? ]

[strayknight]

[The message is a weird one to get but...]

most horror games but there is a really good horror one called grounds haunted. Why?

[esperimental]

Oh wow I thought I'd have to try a couple times more before someone doesn't immediately hang up... thanks.

Umm. Retrospec wanted me to. Bingo? And people kept telling me how great videogames are but I've never actually played one.

shou → backdated to 07/02, happy tusslin' birthday

[esperimental]

[ Ritsu's still checking back on the replies he's getting on his gift inquiry post on one hand, while carrying groceries in the other arm. Well, half were answers he didn't understand, and the other half--or around 20% started to go on some direction at least, so he was grateful for that. But his day was about to get better... ]

Hey, you! You're that punk that got Jeff suspended!

[ Now some foul-breathed bigger teenager was all up in his face. Along with some other equally angry goons with serious furrows in their brows. ]

... Who are you?

Don't play dumb with us! You helped out that dweeb with the violin and got us in trouble with the cops and our schools four months ago!

[ Oh. That's lovely. People who blame others for their own misdeeds. Happy birthday, self. ]

Whatever you did and will do from now on is on you. Also, just a suspension is disappointing. You're in my way, move it.

[ "At least let me put down my groceries??" ]

Oh no you don't! Now you're getting that knuckle sandwich that's way overdue!

[ Grabbed by the collar, again. Oh joy. At least they haven't tried to grab his phone off him again, yet. ]

[chargebomb]

[ aw, street bullying from some punks to some prep-looking kid... it practically warms his heart to see it, by which shou means it's almost decent entertainment, only not really at all. ]

Oi, four on one is kind of unfair, isn't it?

[ he just taps the kid who's grabbing ritsu on the shoulder. shou appears almost out of nowhere, remarkably stealthy when he wants to be. he's just a voice, a bit of red hair behind the bully's shoulder, from ritsu's point of view, but the friendly tap on the bully's shoulder turns into a less-friendly grip on his arm. ]

Come on, at least let him put his food down. Maybe there are eggs or something.

[esperimental]

What the? Another brat showed up, tch. [ Not intimidated as of yet due to Shou's being somewhat vertically challenged, his voice still implies easily he's not taking him seriously. ] You his friend or something?

[ Uh. No? He's never seen the guy-- he thinks?? Well he doesn't have a very good view from here. But Ritsu appreciates the distraction. Taking the opportunity to abruptly kick the guy's leg while his face is turned, he loses his grip. ]

OW! Why you--

[ He retaliates against another of the bullies' attempts to grab him with an elbow to his ribs, god this is hard to balance, he's sorry, groceries. But more than that, he shouldn't leave the guy who gave him an opening alone. ]

Hey, aren't we running?

caelum → challenge someone to a thumb war and win

[esperimental]

This is probably the only easy thing I got on my list...

[ Knowing her motherly nature from before, he was perfectly aware she had the intention to basically throw the match the second he'd asked. ]

At least let me try to win genuinely for a few tries. I've already cheated another one of the slots and I don't feel that good about it.

ryoji → convince a stranger to give you a piggyback ride somewhere

[esperimental]

[ Where the fresh hell is "somewhere" supposed to be? Uhh well. Ritsu didn't have a clue how strict this would be, hopefully he doesn't involve super far distances. It feels truly pathetic to ask this sort of thing when he's Just Become A Teen™ but he needs to swallow his pride for the sake of answers.

Again. ]

Nnnghhhh... owww ow, ow...!

[ He ends up picking a spot not too far from a clinic to fake a sprain, with the hopes that once he's dropped off he can just sneak away. The one who comes to his rescue unfortunately is not that type of person. ]

H-help? Can someone take me to the clinic please? I think I have a sprain...

[ He'd sell it more with better acting skills but he does not have those. ]

[appraiser]

[ You don't need acting skills, all you need is to say the word "ow" and Ryoji comes rushing over, hand hovering but not touching Ritsu for fear of making something worse. For Ritsu to self-diagnose a sprain already, and that it's bad enough he thinks he needs a clinic visit instead of simply ice and elevation, Ryoji can believe it's bad. ]

What happened? Is it your ankle? Which one?

[ Both??? ]

[esperimental]

[ Oh god no not Ryoji-san?? He's already been feeling weird since the last conversation they had over Retrospec. D-don't quit the act now Ritsu! Some of the people around are already staring... ]

Left... Gah...

[ Motioning it over he feigns reeling from the sting. "How am I supposed to get home like this?" would have been an included line, but Ritsu anticipates this is enough for Ryoji to go full concern mode. ]

I'm sorry about this but-- can you carry me on your back?

yukine → share a memory you've never shared w/ a stranger + demonstrate a power

[esperimental]

[ Why on earth would you just try and scout for people who you don't know to tell weird things about yourself? ... Apparently, "for answers". What kind of answers will happen later. So while traversing the park with some apprehension, Ritsu finds a kid alone that looks close enough to his age, greeting him. ]

Um... hey?

[ Good enough. ]

Say, do you believe in aliens?

[secare]

( sometimes "answers" is all you need to propel yourself head first into a whole laundry list of weird and confusing tasks. for as weird as everything already is, at least this brand of weird serves some kind of purpose.

considering that, he's not too surprised when he's approached by a stranger. )

Hey.

( wait. what?

uh. )

Uh. Sort of? Like not really but I don't dismiss it?

[esperimental]

Oh. Well, I mean, the universe is that kind of expanse where life forms could exist just forever beyond our reach... that's fine.

[ You're not here to justify your opening remarks with science Ritsu... ] Um. I knew somebody like that, an upperclassman. She wanted to talk to beings from space.

I was told to... share a memory with a stranger because of this app. [ God this doesn't get any less idiotic sounding to do. ]

riku → accept a challenge + compliment a stranger on something weird

[esperimental]

[ Wandering into the toy section was an unexpected detour while just... well, no, it can't really be a detour if you're already absently wandering around is it? Since it was summer, all the fun things like goggles and kickboards were on display out front, and some less conventional stuff like hula hoops stacked against each other.

Little did Ritsu know, just like a Pokémon trainer encounter, somebody had been waiting to engage in hula hoop combat... ]

[darkinferno]

[There are a couple of squares on his bingo sheet that just are strange. Challenging someone to a hula hoop contest? That assumes that first off he even knows how to hula hoop, and that secondly he'd ever want to do so in public.

But hey. He's curious to know what happens if someone manages to black out their card entirely, and it's not like the rest of them aren't out there doing similarly dumb things already...

So he's found a couple of hula hoops near the summer toys section, and after a few minutes to commit himself to actually doing this, Dante strides toward the first person he sees walking by themselves.

Hi.]

Hey. Hula hoop contest, you and me, right now. What do you say?

ii

[saburai]

[ That's... certainly an outfit, but Kaguya's not one to judge right now. After all, she's wearing a strange hat on her head herself. If this kid wants to be a superhero, there's probably no harm in that.

...Though his question makes his outfit a little more confusing. ]

You dressed up as one without knowing what they did?

adds silly icon just for this

[esperimental]

Of course I do.

[ Um. He did not prepare a big hero speech beforehand. Time to wing this with all his might. ]

We fight evildoers! In the name of justice, small acts as well as large, we protect the harmony of the city. Alas, there are no evildoers for me to apprehend, nor cats to save from trees, nor elderly ladies in need of assistance across the street.

[ That was only three sentences and already HE IS TIRED. Um. He does notice the hat though when he shifts back to a normal...ish stance. ]

Do you... need any assistance...?

[ Like say, for fashion. ]

izumi → challenge someone to a thumb war and win

[esperimental]

[ Times like this Ritsu really wishes it wasn't vacation, it would have been so much easier to ask a random classmate for this but no. Ritsu doesn't really see anyone around his age. ... Not that it would be any easier to just go up and ask a favor from people whose names he doesn't remember...

Scoping around the square was starting to get frustrating, and soon enough he just approached a guy who looked slightly less busy than everyone else at the time; and/or a conveniently short walking distance. ]

... Hey, fight me.

[ To summarize with another three words: ]

Thumb war. Bingo.

[adoringpast]

[ Sena's just minding his business per usual as he's almost done with his bingo shit when all of a sudden this kid just approached him from out of nowhere for a-- ]

Thumb war? Seriously? What are you, five?

[ Why put a thumb war on a bingo square, Retrospec... He turns to the kid, crossing his arms together as he carefully scrutinizes him with his cold gaze. ]

What do I get if I win, then? I can't just do these things without any incentive, you know.

1, sorry I was slow starting

[mincingminuet]

[Penelope, out for a walk around campus mostly kept towards the shadier, more public spots around a big reflecting pool. Casually she tosses a rock, watching it skip twice, three times...and then she hears that incredibly passionate speech.

Turning, she arches an eyebrow.]

Blueberry juice and ice? Can I just buy the ice?

it's fine! sorry for my own delay as well

[esperimental]

[ Ritsu leans back in his seat, thinking about it deeply... for all of 3 seconds. ]

It'll cost the same price. I was told to sell juice, so I will, but you don't have to consume the juice part if you're... sure.

zoro → gather seashells at the beach + have a chocobo race

[esperimental]

[ It's an early morning, but sunrise would be coming soon. Being too efficient a student with little interest in most people left Ritsu with a lot of free time--time he wish he wasn't using to think about how to do sidequest bingo.

In its own way, he supposes it's better than nothing. #BroodingBrother2017 doesn't have to be a 24/7 deal. ]

... Ah?

[ It's far earlier than people would usually arrange to go to the beach, there's some adult looking down at the sand really hard. What's he doing?

He should leave him alone. But what the hell, he doesn't have anything better to do. Ritsu goes ahead and offers his assistance, taking some time to reach him. Little did he know it was Adult™. ]

Did you lose something?

[stopbleeding]

A seagull took my shell. I'm looking for a new one.

[He's looking so hard he doesn't move his eyes away from the sand. Hell, he crouches down to get closer to it. There are bits and pieces poking through and he digs them out to see if there's anything good. Nope. Nada. Nothing.

Zoro sighs and finally looks up at–Oh. Hey. He points.]

Fake kid?

2

[chargebomb]

[ ... this is one of the strangest things he's seen in the city, which offers so much that's bizarre already that you can hardly go for a walk without bumping into a chocobo or someone singing rickrolls for no reason or anything else.

shou just leans in to examine the costume, looking very much like it's taking almost all his effort not to laugh. because it is. ]

Nice mask, dude. Are you new to the job or what?

[esperimental]

[ The worst possible thing has happened. Okay maybe not absolute worst. Maybe second or third worst, after being seen by family, or having a roach on your shoulder. ]

Suzu--

[ I AM MOST DEFINITELY NOT SOMEONE YOU KNOW ]

Citizen! I may be new to this, but I take it seriously. Wipe off that grin on your face.